Mirko Bortolotti - Photo Credit: FIA Formula Two Championship
FIA Formula Two Championship leader Mirko Bortolotti once again proved to be the class of the field in free practice at Monza on Friday, topping both sessions as his home round got underway.
In the first session the Italian, who can wrap up the title at this the penultimate round of the season, was the only man to drop below the 1m41 mark. He was 0.231s quicker than the next fastest man Mihai Marinescu. Bortolotti's only challenger in the points Christopher Zanella was third, nearly fourth tenths behind.
Miki Monras was fourth, with Alex Brundle just ahead of Thiemo Storz in fifth and sixth respectively. Ramon Pineiro, who is on a three-race winning streak, could only manage seventh, nearly a second adrift of Bortolotti. Kelvin Snoeks, Jack Clarke and Benjamin Lariche completed the top ten.
It was more of the same in the afternoon, with Bortolotti again the only driver below 1m41, improving his benchmark by 0.083s. He was nearly joined by Marinescu, who continued to impress with second place. He missed the magic barrier by just 0.002s, and was 0.271s behind Bortolotti.
Brundle was just 0.016 behind the Romanian in third, with Monras fourth and Mikkel Mac fifth. Zanella was sixth, with Tobias Hegewald seventh and Pineiro again nearly a second adrift in eighth. Storz and Sunghak Mun completed the top ten.
Results: Monza – Free practice one:
1. Mirko Bortolotti, 1:40.814s
2. Mihai Marinescu, +0.231s
3. Christopher Zanella, +0.398s
4. Miki Monras, +0.573s
5. Alex Brundle, +0.736s
6. Thiemo Storz, +0.792s
7. Ramon Pineiro, +0.986s
8. Kelvin Snoeks, +1.245s
9. Jack Clarke, +1.405s
10. Benjamin Lariche, +1.469s
Free practice two:
1. Mirko Bortolotti, 1:40.731s
2. Mihai Marinescu, +0.271s
3. Alex Brundle, +0.287s
4. Miki Monras, +0.402s
5. Mikkel Mac, +0.601s
6. Christopher Zanella, +0.640s
7. Tobias Hegewald, +0.823s
8. Ramon Pineiro, +0.979s
9. Theimo Storz, +1.131s
10. Sunghak Mun, +1.158s
